ACTRESS and writer Rebecca, 51, is married to screenwriter Phil Clymer. They live in London with their children Oliver, 16, and Tilly, 14.

Not a lot of people know this, but I’m very good at… singing harmonies. When I was at school I was always in choirs and started my own barbershop quartet when I was eight. We didn’t have boaters or anything, but we’d sing traditional American barbershop songs in our hall at home and I’d make up all the harmonies.

My best friend is… my husband Phil. He is always the first person I tell things to, I always listen to his advice and he always makes me laugh.

My nickname is… I don’t think I’ve got one, which probably means I have, behind my back. One close friend calls me Becky, which I like because it’s just him who uses the name. Otherwise Becca or Becs.

The bravest thing I’ve ever done is… get into a lift. I have various phobias, the worst of which is claustrophobia which I’m currently tackling with the help of a cognitive therapist, so every time I use a lift, it’s the bravest thing I’ve ever done.

My favourite TV show is… The West Wing. Phil and I have watched the boxset of all eight seasons at least three times. We’re weirdly obsessed with it. It’s so brilliant that we leave it for five years and then go back to it and love it all over again.

The best thing my parents taught me was… to try and see things from other people’s perspective

Rebecca Front

My perfect evening is… dinner with the family. My husband works from home and is a fantastic cook so there is almost always some fantastic meal waiting for me when I get home.

I’m quite bossy about making sure we all sit round the table with no telly. We’re quite strict with the kids about putting mobile phones away and we sit and talk. It’s the highlight of every day for me.

I’d like to say sorry to… my friends. I can go for weeks or months without seeing them because work gets in the way. For the past six months I’ve been playing Anna Mikhailovna, an impoverished Russian princess in the BBC drama War And Peace, going backwards and forwards to Eastern Europe. So I’m forever sending texts saying, “Sorry… I haven’t forgotten you.”

My first kiss was… with a boy at a drama group I belonged to at 14. I’m sure if he reads this he would agree that we slightly did it because everybody else was getting off with someone and we were the only two left.

My biggest regret is… I don’t have major regrets as I’m quite cautious about making decisions, so I don’t leap into things.

The one thing I’d change about myself is… to not suffer from anxiety. This is something I have had to deal with all my life. I developed claustrophobia when I was about seven. And I am no stranger to panic attacks. I have never shied away from talking about these issues because the more people talk about mental health problems, the better.

The best thing my parents taught me was… to try and see things from other people’s perspective, which is also a very useful thing as an actor. My mum was a teacher, who wrote children’s books, and my dad illustrated all of them. He designed the rather iconic lettering of The Beatles’ Rubber Soul album. They also taught me to respect other people and not to patronise them.

The last time I cried was… a couple of weeks ago on my birthday when I read a particularly sweet message my daughter wrote on the card she gave me. It was really lovely and I cried buckets while she rolled her eyes as teenage girls tend to do.

The first record I ever bought was… Remember You’re A Womble in 1974. I thought the Wombles were great and ended up buying all their albums.

WENN

'I’m quite cautious about making decisions, so I don’t leap into things'

It’s not good for my image, but I like… singing loudly when I am on my own in the car.

My greatest weakness is… clothes shopping, which I have passed on to my daughter. We love going out together. And I also do quite a lot of online shopping, Googling about on websites when I am supposed to be working. Not expensive clothes though, I’ve never really been into designers.

If I could pass any law I would… ban intolerance. I cannot be doing with people interfering in other people’s lives, trying to impose who you should marry, how you should live your life, what God you should believe in, how you worship. All of that drives me nuts.

I drive… a slightly beaten up estate car. I really enjoy driving, which is fortunate because due to claustrophobia I don’t use the tube.

The shop I can’t walk past is… AllSaints. My daughter teases me for my taste in what she calls “actressy” clothes. I like anything that looks quite classic and simple, but actually has a twist to it. AllSaints does lots of blacks and greys and creams, which look conventional but maybe hang in an interesting way.

The most expensive thing I’ve ever splashed out on is… a very simple, long, black Armani coat I bought in a sale 25 years ago and I’m still wearing it. At the time I would never have spent more than £70 on a coat and this was about twice that, but it’s absolutely been worth it.

My perfect Sunday is… dog walking in the countryside, and rounding up the kids and Phil to go for a pub lunch. We haven’t actually got our own dog, but we have friends who loan us theirs!

My favourite place in Britain is… London. It’s where I grew up and I still love it. It’s got all the cultural things I love like theatre, galleries and museums. I love going to concerts and ambling around the shops and the parks. When I am away from it for more than a week, I get twitchy and want to get back.

My last holiday was… a walking holiday in Somerset at half term. We go down there a lot, and over the years have developed quite a big social group. If we ever had a holiday home, that’s where it would be.

I’m currently reading… Elizabeth Is Missing by Emma Healey. An old lady called Maud knows that her friend Elizabeth is missing, but no one believes her because she has Alzheimer’s. They just think it’s Maud being dipsy.

The best day of my life was… winning the BAFTA for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme (The Thick Of It) in 2010. Phil was with me, and we went to the party and had a couple of glasses of champagne. And when we came home at about 1.30am my parents had let the children stay up in their pyjamas as a special treat. They’d made all these lovely banners saying: “Well done Mummy. You’re a winner!” and hung them across the hallway.

If I had half an hour left on Earth… I would grab a blanket, snuggle under it with Phil and the children and put on an old film.

Curious: True Stories And Everyday Oddities by Rebecca Front is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson on Thursday in paperback, price £8.99. To order, see Express Bookshop (expressbookshop.co.uk).